17 mo, in induced coma, can they start ketogenic diet now?

My grandson is 17 months old. He was a happy, healthy, baby. But wasn't hitting his milestones as soon as he should have. He learned 2 or 3 words, but never learned to walk. He started having constant back to back seizures (as many as 30 in one night) when he was 15 months old. They said he has damage to the left side of the brain caused from an infection while in the womb. They've tried everything. medications did not help and he is now in an induced coma, still registering seizure activity. They were going to start him on the Ketogenic diet. But have not because they want him awake for that (which I don't understand) and everytime they try to wake him up the seizures start back up. And now they are doing a blood transfusion because his blood count is low. What i need to know is why can't they start the diet while he's still in the coma, and what would be some reasons for his blood count to be low? Is his body not making enough blood? And I also don't understand how an infection could manifest into this so long after he was supposedly exposed?

Thank you for asking!
Your kid needs a specialised paediatric neurology facility to sort out this seizures and have them completely managed. Seizure of this damage may be attributed to some focal damage to the brain area resulting in hyperstimulation leading to seizures.In children all of them are mostly infections induced and CSF work up and brain imaging will help reach the cause.Now the low blood count is due to seizure medicines most likely as those are notorious for decreasing the blood count. Ketogenic diet has its own pros and cons and delaying that might have some reason which the doctors are fully aware of.Trust your paediatric neurologists and hope for the best.meanwhile visit our epilepsy health centre for further guidance.
http://ehealthforum.com/healthcenter/epile
psy
I hope it helps

DISCLAIMER:
"Ask a Doctor" questions are answered by certified physicians and other medical professionals.
For more information about experts participating in the "Ask a Doctor" Network, please visit our
medical experts page.
You may also visit our Brain and Head Injuries , for moderated patient to patient support and information.

The information provided on eHealth Forum is designed to improve, not replace, the relationship between a patient and his/her own physician.
Personal consultation(s) with a qualified medical professional is the proper means for diagnosing any medical condition.